


Alarm

by FassyAnon



Category: Actor - RPF, British Actor - RPF, Henry Cavill - Fandom
Genre: F/M, be careful what you wear in hotels
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-07-26 14:58:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7578523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FassyAnon/pseuds/FassyAnon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A little drabble about a chance encounter. In February. And there's a fire.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Sabrina never slept well in a bed that wasn’t hers. The thread count for hotel sheets was never up to her standards and besides, she never knew if they were actually clean. She shuddered at the thought of sleeping on something that unknown numbers of people had used. It made her skin crawl.

That was why she traveled with her own sheets. A luxurious 800 thread count gave her a fighting chance in her quest for a decent night’s shut-eye. It also meant that she could sleep as she did at home. She didn’t like getting all tangled up in nightclothes and this way she didn’t have to. She simply left a robe on the door handle in case of emergency. She’d never had to use it.

Until today.

By the time the alarm was sounding, the fire was well underway on their floor. It didn’t help that it was 3:33. That only meant that all the guests were woken in the middle of the night to thick black smoke that scorched their lungs and burned their eyes with all the chemicals that were being released. No one had any time to grab anything of value before exiting.

Sabrina, quick on her feet, ran a washcloth under water before grabbing her robe. She checked her door for heat before putting the cloth over her face and, shoving her feet into the flip flops that she took with her everywhere she went, she opened her door. She couldn’t hear the din of the guests running about, frantic to get away from the flames and smoke, over the ear-piercing alarm. She cinched the belt about her waist as tight as she could and waited for a break in the stream of people hurrying along.

Sabrina saw a woman stumble and lose her footing before falling, twisting so she fell on her back and the reason became apparent: she had two children in her arms. Not wanting to see them trampled, Sabrina pushed and shoved her way over, grabbing the children so the mother could get to her feet. Before she knew what was happening, a tall man _he must be the father_ pulled the toddler out of her arms, leaving her with the infant, and helped the mother to her feet, turning her back around and motioning them in the direction of the exit. Sabrina lay the moistened cloth over the child’s face, hoping to keep as much of the acrid smoke from the infant’s lungs as possible.

They were in the stairwell, winding their way down down down and then they were outside, the early February air making it impossible to catch their breath. Coughing, tears streaming down soot-streaked faces, it was easy to tell those who hadn’t thought to don shoes or slippers as they hopped back and forth. The sudden absence of the alarm made Sabrina think she’d gone deaf. She looked at the child in her arms and saw that she was crying. She held the child closer as she pulled the wash cloth from over her nose and mouth. She instinctively turned her back to the bitter wind, sheltering the screaming baby as best as she could.

Looking about, Sabrina couldn’t find the child’s parents. She knew they couldn’t have gone far. She continued to rock the little girl and protect her as best as she could until she felt the hand on her shoulder and saw the relieved mother. She handed her over with a _you’re welcome_ to her _thank you_.

An ill-timed gust of wind caused a shriek from Sabrina as her barely-there robe flapped about in the breeze, threatening to expose her bottom to everyone. She wished she had the warm child in her arms again, even if it meant enduring her crying right into her ears.

She turned when she felt another hand on her shoulder, this time it was the father who was in front of her. If she thought she was in bad shape, well, he only had his leave-nothing-to-the-imagination briefs on.

“She was just here.”

“Who?”

“Your wife. She got your daughter and went back over there.”

She didn’t understand the perplexed look he gave the mother of his children until he turned back to her.

“I’m not married, those aren’t my kids.”

“But you-”

“Saw a woman fall in a mad dash for the door to get out of a burning building. Like you, I helped.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Look, are you here with anyone?”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m thinking conserving body heat would be good about now.”

She noticed that his lips were turning blue, or maybe it was the crazy amber colored streetlights. Either way, she jumped at the chance to keep from freezing to death and plastered herself to him. It was a few minutes before she felt something and opened her eyes to find a blanket had been draped around his shoulders. He maneuvered the cloth so she was completely cocooned within. As she started to warm up, the craziest notion came to her and she couldn’t help the laughter that escaped.

“You find this amusing?”

Sabrina smiled as she realized he had an accent.

“Not really, but yes.”

“Care to explain?”

She tilted her head back so she could look at him, noting he was more than just a little handsome.

“What if this is the story we tell our grandchildren about how we met?”

She found she much preferred his deep chuckle to the harsh alarm from only minutes earlier.

“Then I think I need to know your name.”

“Sabrina.”

“I’m Henry. Nice to meet you.”


	2. Chapter 2

You know, when I introduced myself to him, I never thought my life would end up like this.

Sure, we hadn’t really been in jeopardy in that hotel fire, but when you are jolted out of your bed at dark o’clock and thick, acrid, disgusting smoke is all around you making it next to impossible to see or breathe, that’s not what you’re thinking. You’re thinking: this is the day I’m going to die. Well, in reality what you’re thinking is AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRGHHHHH!!!!

We were stuck outside in the bitter February cold for longer than we should have been, but at least I had my furnace with me. Granted, I initially warmed him up but, in the long run, he was the warmer of the two of us.

A nearby hotel finally opened their lobby to the throng of people stuck outside, and I thought for sure that Henry would look to escape me. I mean, one can only take being plastered, practically naked, to a complete stranger for so long. I was happy when he didn’t. We ended up sharing a chair, me on his lap and the blanket around us so we’d conserve body heat, for what felt like the better part of the morning.

It was when I got anxious and fidgety that he finally asked me what was up.

“It’s a half hour until my breakfast meeting with a VC and my phone and laptop are up in my room, probably ruined. My home office is in San Francisco and they are all still sound asleep. If I don’t make this meeting, my company’s done.”

His eyebrows shot up before he spoke.

“Surely they’ll understand something like this.”

I don’t know why, but I was comfortable with him.

“I hope so. I’d really hate to lose my job. But I can’t help but feel that this is the universe’s way of telling me that my life choices stink and I need to reevaluate my priorities.”

“That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?”

I nodded in agreement as I thought. Why should I tell my sob story to a stranger?

To hell with it.

“You’d think so, wouldn’t you, but a couple of months ago I caught my boyfriend cheating on me, as in caught him, so bye bye Barry.” I was ticking the items off on my fingers as I relayed them all. Yeah, hadn’t been thinking about this at all. “Two days before I’m told to get on the plane to come out here, my new landlord gives me an eviction notice: she’s tearing down the apartments that have been there forever and should be a landmark or something, but she bought them just over a year ago so she could build condos.”

“They can do that?”

“Yeah, trust me, I checked. And then the day before I leave, my boss tells me the news about the company. He was supposed to be here-”

“Is he at least attractive?”

I couldn’t even begin to comprehend what he’d just said. “I’m sorry, what?”

I hadn’t yet seen him smile, at least not like that. I mean, seriously, one, and only one word came to mine: dazzling.

“It’s a policy of mine. I only allow attractive strangers to sit on my lap.”

That boy scrambled my brain, but only temporarily.

“Does that line normally work for you?”

“What line?”

Ugh, that fake feigned innocence look of his just might have done me in. I decided to forge on ahead.

“Anyway, I think he asked me to do it since he knows we’re not going to get the funding and he can then blame it on me so he doesn’t have to take any of the responsibility.”

“That’s a dickhead move.”

“Yeah, but typical.”

“What do you mean?”

Now he was confused. Great, I got to be the one to educate him. “You know, put a woman in charge of something when you know it’s going to fail so you can blame her.”

“That happens?”

“It’s the latest trend, and by latest I mean it’s been happening for forever. It’s happened to two friends of mine, a third got recently promoted and we’re wondering if it’s going to happen to her, I mean, we’ve seen the signs, and now me.”

“I had no idea. I’m sorry.”

“Thanks, but to top it all off? And I know I’m whining, but I don’t care anymore.” I figured I may as well go for all of it. “My flight out was horrendous. I’d done the right thing and let a family sit next to each other, but I got stuck in a middle seat and the guy at the window wouldn’t get the hint that I wasn’t interested and the one on the aisle ‘fell asleep’ and only ‘woke up’ when I got the flight attendant to rouse him, since I couldn’t. And, he was man-spreading. Seriously, he had the aisle, he didn’t need my space, too. On top of all that? We were late getting in due to the storms over Chicago so I had to sit next to those two knuckleheads longer than absolutely necessary.”

I ended with my fingers all spread out. I looked at my hand and it all hit. It wasn’t that I hadn’t thought about the first three things. I had, I just hadn’t put them all together, one right after the other, all piled up like that. The enormity of what I’d just laid out really hit, and I didn’t know what to do. Henry caught my attention when he tucked some hair behind my ear.

“Do you have no one you can call?”

“No. I tell you, the universe is telling me to change my life. It was hell just trying to get Charlie to agree to meet for breakfast. H-, he’s heading to China today. He’ll be unreachable for who knows how long and by then it’ll be too late.”

Henry was really sweet, trying to solve this for me. He tried.

“We can call the restaurant, have someone get him a message.”

“That is a fantastic idea, and probably would at least buy some time, if I knew the name of the restaurant. It’s in my phone, which is in my hotel room. That’s what I mean by the universe telling me that I need to change my life. I just don’t know what I should change it to.”

Quiet. He was quiet. He was probably trying to figure out how to extricate himself from this situation. I wouldn’t blame him if he-

“Would you mind letting me up?”

Yep, scampering away from the whiny bitch. I couldn’t blame him. Once we were both standing, I felt the only thing I could do was give him the blanket. After all, he only had his itty bitty tighty-whities. Once he’d flung it around his waist, he wasted no time leaving. I didn’t even rate a ‘good bye’.

Yep, we’d never have those grandchildren, not like we would have, anyway, but still: one can dream. I sat back down and thought and thought and thought, and by ‘thought’ I mean felt sorry for myself. It really was turning out to be just about the worst-

“It’s still going to be a while before they let us back in. In the meantime, I secured a room. Do you want to go get cleaned up?”

I’d been startled out of my pity party and saw his lips moving, but couldn’t make out the words. What was he doing back here, with me?

“Sabrina, do you want to go get cleaned up?”

“Are they letting us back in?” I glanced around, expecting to see people getting up. Instead, most of them were sleeping.

“No. I secured a room. Come on, I bet you’ll feel better after a nice, hot bath.”

Before I knew it, I was up in the bathroom of the loveliest suite, hot water cascading into loads of bubbles. I’d waited until the door was closed before I looked in the mirror. I heard his chuckle through the door after I shrieked.

“You’ve been looking at my face this whole time and I looked far worse than you, my dear.”

“You may have more soot on your face, Henry, but even if you had a bag over your head you are far prettier than I could ever dream of being.” I was glad that stopped his chuckle.

It took a couple of washings, but I was able to get all the soot off. My face was dry as the Sahara, but at least the soot was gone.

I shrugged out of the flimsy robe and edged my way into the tub, feeling tears slide down my cheeks as I settled in.

My life was a mess. No place to live, no job, no support: I was all alone. No one, nothing, hell, I didn’t have any possessions other than my robe and my stupid flip flops. If I walked into any police station, I couldn’t prove who I was.

That was what finally broke me. It was no longer just tears flowing down my face. I was sobbing, for everything that I’d already lost and everything I was about to lose.

It went on for a while, my sobbing. I shouldn’t have been surprised that I got Henry’s attention, but I wasn’t expecting him to show up in the bathroom.

“I promise you-”

I think my scream pierced his soul. At the very least, it pierced his eardrums. Pretty sure that was what the pained look on his face told me. Also, he was rubbing his ears.

I reached out to him, my hand flinging water in his direction. “I’m so sorry, Henry.”

“I promise you, things will work themselves out.”

I wanted to get away so I could cry in peace, but if I got out of the tub, well, I was naked. I was trapped and I was stuck and I cried even harder, if that was possible. You know what Henry did? He got in the tub with me. He held me, he comforted me. He got the floor soaking wet when the water spilled over. Henry’s a big guy.

My life wasn’t just a mess; it was a complete and utter shambles. Two months and four days ago had you asked me, I would have told you my life was perfect. Awesome job, cool place to live, and a man who was good to me and who I loved and who loved me. Two months and three days ago is when it all started to come apart. Not a single thing that I would have pointed to as being good was actually good. It was all built on a pack of lies that stretched from here to the edge of the solar system, or maybe just to the moon.

I don’t know why, but Henry was being nice to me, stroking my back… my very naked back.

I then realized what I’d done to myself: here I was, in some stranger’s hotel room with not a stitch of clothing on, naked, and I’d let him climb into the tub with me, all because he was gorgeous and nice and comforting me. I obviously had a death wish and that realization made me, yep, you guessed it, cry even harder.

He kept right on comforting me. He didn’t shush me, didn’t try to rush me. How did he know this was what I’d needed?

I finally shed my last tear and noticed that the water had lost its heat. That wasn’t all that I noticed. His hand had grabbed my hip, holding me securely in place so I wouldn’t slip off his lap. When I was no longer sobbing, he’d gone from stroking my back to holding me close. Holy cow. Henry was full of muscles. I wanted to put my hand on his chest, but that would have been entirely too forward of me, right?

I know, I know. Who thinks of putting their hands on the gorgeous, mostly naked man they are sitting on when their life is in ruins? Me. Pathetic.

I struggled to sit up and when I realized he could pretty much see anything he wanted if he simply lowered his gaze, I turned away.

“Um, I really don’t want to sound ungrateful because I’m not, but, um, would you mind-”

“Sabrina, my eyes are closed and I won’t peek. I give you my word.”

Within minutes I was drowning in a robe, towel-drying my hair, and taking a stroll around his suite. Yes, I could stroll around in his suite, it was that big. I think it might even have been bigger than my apartment.

Wait, who was this guy that he could afford this room?

I sat in front of the window, exhausted and distracted by the blanket of snow for as far as the eye could see in Boston Commons. I imagined how quiet it would be smack dab in the middle, surrounded by all that noise-dampening fluffiness…

“…home?”

I’d been staring out the window, allowing myself to be completely lost in the view, actively avoiding all the hard questions and negative thoughts going on in my head. I knew he was speaking to me, but I just couldn’t bring myself to move or speak or acknowledge him in any way. 

I felt hollow. I think I’d released all emotions back in that tub. I knew I needed to figure out what I was going to do about my apartment, about my job, about my life, but I couldn’t be bothered to care at that exact moment.

I turned when I felt his hand on my shoulder and that was the moment I’m pretty sure I started to feel normal again. That’s what my laughter felt like, anyway.

He was barely covered by the hotel robe which was clearly not made for someone of his size. It was three sizes too big for me and about two sizes too small for him. Yep, definitely a ‘one size fits all’ article of clothing.

I was finally able to get my laughter under control and he extended his hand to me. Not only did he help me up, he picked me up.

“You seem to be in a much better mood.”

I nodded as I felt tears welling up. Was it his acknowledgment as to what had gone on in the tub that caused it?

I barely found my voice. “Little bit.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

I forgot to answer him. I’d seen him from all sorts of angles, but none as close as I was. I came so close to just kissing him, but that would have been rude and presumptive and just wrong. Instead, I hugged him. It took a long time before I was ready to let go and he indulged me. When he set me back down on my feet, I moved to the sofa, and encouraged him to do the same.

“So, Sabrina, what are you going to do now?”

“I have no idea.” I tucked my legs under me and leaned against the back of the sofa before I sat right back up. “Actually, that’s not entirely true. I need to find a place to live and find a job. That means I need to update my resume and start to put feelers out. I really hate looking for my next gig.”

“What do you do?”

I’ve always been wary about telling people. Most of the time they want to become my friend so I can help them find their ‘dream job’ or get financing for an idea. But this guy was in the most expensive suite in the most expensive hotel in the city, and he was able to get it pretty much while just about naked. Maybe I needed to know him.

“Well, I guess you could say I’m a relationship builder. I put people together who should know each other, companies and investors or staff or, well, just anything. Think of it like a dating service, but for companies. I mostly help start-ups get off the ground.”

“That sounds exciting. But wait, if that’s what you do, why wouldn’t you be successful with this guy, Charlie.”

And that’s when I realized he’d been paying attention to what I’d said. He really was just a nice guy looking to help. Great, just my luck. The one time I’d be interested to see where things might go, he wasn’t. Still, my world was all about who you know and I knew I needed to know him.

“He’s not my contact. He’s the owner’s contact, and I’ve heard about him. From what I understand he’s pretty old school, as in he has very specific views about women and what they should and should not be allowed to do. I’ve already contacted those who are in my circle who might be interested in this company, and I wasn’t all that successful. No one really likes Peter.”

“Peter is…?”

“The owner, and my boss.”

“Hm.” I could tell he wanted to say something and was holding back.

“Come on, what is it? Out with it.”

“Peter is living up to his name.”

I was having one of my characteristic blonde moments, but hey: they come naturally to me. Then I got it and couldn’t stop laughing. I was finding more and more that I really liked being around Henry. He was good for me.

“Can you do it anywhere, your job?”

“Theoretically I should be able to. I’m dealing with too many who still think they need face-to-face. I mean, with all the videoconferencing available nowadays, you’d think I wouldn’t have to travel or I could live anywhere. I’m on the road pretty much constantly.”

“Always to one location?”

“It changes with each industry I’m working with.” I could see he was thinking about that and decided to try to answer the question I thought he would probably ask. “I go where the people are, the ones who do the work or come up with the ideas for whatever industry I’m involved with at the time, and so they tend to be congregated in a particular area, like Detroit for cars, or Hollywood for films, or the Silicon Valley for tech. I’ve been spending more and more time in Europe, mostly Germany but recently quite a bit of time in Italy and Norway, too.”

“Do you ever get to London?”

“Every chance I can, which isn’t nearly enough. Why, is that where you live?”

“As a matter of fact, yes.” 

I could normally small talk with the best of them, but with him, he was just too distracting. I hated silence so I started to get a little fidgety.

“Have you ever thought about moving there?”

“Dreamed about it, yeah.”

“What’s stopping you?”

I couldn’t figure out why I wanted to tell him my life story, but I did. I wanted to confide in him and have long conversations with him about stuff that was important and not so important.

“So what’s stopping you?”

“Hm? Oh up to two months ago, my whole life was in San Francisco.”

“Maybe that’s the change the universe is trying to get you to see.”

“I doubt that.”

“What, the hotel fire making you miss a crucial meeting, and meeting a handsome gentleman from London, a place you’ve dreamed of living, doesn’t convince you?”

“Well, when you put it like that.”

Was that just polite laughter from him, or was he trying to be blasé?

“When are you heading back to San Francisco?”

“It was supposed to be later this morning, but that’s not gonna happen. I may as well stay overnight.”

“Do you want to go to dinner tonight?”

“That’s sweet, but you don’t have to do that.”

“I want to. I can talk up London, make you want to live there. Have dinner with me?”

* * *

That was yesterday. Where am I today? I’m on a plane headed for London.


	3. Chapter 3

I know what you’re thinking. I don’t blame you, but it’s not like that.

The rest of the day wasn’t easy, but at the same time it wasn’t hard. Once we were let back into the hotel I was able to find out that all my stuff was, for the most part, useless. The fire had spread pretty quickly and my stuff was toast. They wouldn’t let us back up to our rooms since there was an investigation into how it all started.

Great, all I had to my name was my flip flops and my flimsy robe I’d had to put on when I left the other hotel. I was at a loss about what to do for all of 30 seconds. I headed to the front desk and asked for the use of a room and some numbers that I was sure they had. Instead of helping me out, the clerk handed over a voucher to the hotel I’d just been in, letting me know that they’d be the ones to help out. I decided not to get bitchy and made a note never to stay at that hotel chain again. I wanted to head back over and get on with replacing everything, but the hotel didn’t like that I was headed out in just a robe. I knew they were just concerned about the optics. It would look very bad, indeed. When they finally realized I was heading over, regardless of their wishes, and there was nothing they could do about it, they hailed a taxi.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I headed in and was greeted at the front desk by someone who was more than happy to help me. For me, fantastic customer service had the ability to make me a customer for life and, as long as I could afford it, they had a new convert. I was in my room with a list of numbers within minutes and a promise to get me some clothes I could wear.

I first called my credit card company who assured me they’d have a replacement card for me the following day. They told me that, in the mean time, I should have everything I could charged to my room at the hotel and it would all be taken care of. I thanked them and hung up to a knock on the door. It was the promised clothes. They weren’t anything special, but yoga pants and a sweatshirt was a hell of a lot better than my birthday suit.

Finally, things were looking up.

I was able to get in touch with the office and let them know I was okay, but that I’d missed the meeting. Peter had a conniption fit, until I reminded him that I could have died. He tried to blame me for missing the meeting and making the company go under.

I quit. I wasn’t about to take it anymore. He told me good luck getting reimbursed for my travel expenses. I wasn’t concerned: knowing what I knew, I’d had the foresight to get an advance to pay for my travel, banking on the fact that things wouldn’t turn out the way we wanted. I knew he’d try to stick me with the bill.

I had the last laugh, except, I wasn’t actually laughing.

The hotel sent us to a local department store, so I was able to replace pretty much everything I’d had with me. I took the opportunity to pick out a rather nice lingerie set and also got some utilitarian stuff, you know: beige. I found it was good to have some sets of bras and panties that, if you were rummaging in your drawer in the dark, would still match, even if the pieces were from different sets. Then some blouses, a couple of pairs of jeans, a quick detour to makeup, and a good wool coat later and I was ready to head to pick up some replacement luggage.

By the time I got back to my hotel, I was exhausted. I’d only had a few hours sleep and the stress of the day got to me. The nice clerk who had checked me in called me over; they’d needed to switch my room so that a family could have adjoining rooms. I’m always happy to help out where I can, and it really didn’t put me out since I hadn’t had anything in the room.

I think the person helping me check in could tell I was exhausted, although I doubt it was lost on anyone since I could barely keep my eyes open. I had someone by my side to carry my packages and luggage to my room, a key was handed over only a few moments after I’d arrived.

En route to the elevator I pulled my brand new phone out to set an alarm. I knew I’d be collapsing as soon as I walked into my room and didn’t want to oversleep.

I was surprised when I got to my new room since I don’t know why I rated a suite. The room was so bright and cheery and yellow and pretty. There was an enormous spring bouquet on the coffee table and I headed to the bedroom to put my things away and the bellman followed me with my packages and insisted that he take care of everything. I was exhausted and needed a nap and a shower and, against my better judgment, let him take care of everything. When he saw that everything was new, he asked if he could get my things laundered for me before I wore them.

Who were these people? Why were they so nice? Everywhere I turned in Boston, everyone was nice.

* * *

It was several hours later when I headed downstairs to meet Henry. I wasn’t sure where we were going to have dinner, but was hoping we’d be heading somewhere casual since all I had were my new jeans.

At least, that was what I thought until I saw Henry in a suit and seriously, if I thought he’d been handsome before, well, you could have knocked me over with a feather. There’s something about a man in a well-tailored suit that made my blood rush a little faster.

“I thought-”

“I just got back from a meeting and didn’t want you to think I’d stood you up. Let me head up and change. I’ll be right back down.”

I watched him walk away and boy oh boy did my mind go places it shouldn’t. I daydreamed about measuring him for his suit and what it would have been like to lay my hands on him, on all of him. I’m sure I was blushing something fierce when he came back down.

“Are you okay, Sabrina?”

The man was concerned about me. Again. I think he would’ve turned his ass right back around and headed up to his room for room service so he could dine alone if he knew what was going through my brain.

“It just got a little warm in here.” I turned to him and realized he was probably trying to kill me. I didn’t know anyone looked good in brown. His turtleneck looked to be the softest tan cashmere and _how on earth did he look good in a turtleneck_ , and his coffee-colored jacket had to be suede. Yet more reason for me to want to put my hands on the man. Well, I’d been able to get away with it last night and this morning, but now…

“Sabrina?”

I’d registered what he said, but words wouldn’t form.

“Are you okay, Sabrina? Do you want to cancel dinner?”

“Hm? No, no. Sorry. It’s just…” I swear, had we been alone I would have kissed him. Thank goodness we weren’t alone because I would never want to be accused of accosting someone.

“I’m just going to get this out of the way. You have to know how handsome you are and if I seem distracted this evening, it’s only because I am distracted.”

It had been so long since I last heard a man laugh at something I said, and a real laugh, not one of those stupid, fake chuckle sounds that they can make. I’m not that funny of a person, having been told time and time again that I’m far too serious, but I have my moments. I was just glad Henry was getting to see one of them.

“I will keep that in mind. Shall we?”

I went to put on my coat and he stopped me.

“I made reservations here. The food is supposed to be quite good, and I really want to spend as little time in the cold as possible tonight.”

“I don’t blame you. Last night some poor soul was stuck with little ol’ me trying to help keep him warm. I’m sure he would have rather been someplace else.”

“You shouldn’t put yourself down like that. You were lovely company. I’m glad I met you.”

He held his arm out and I was able to feel that lovely suede after all.

* * *

During dinner he took time to talk up London: all the activities and the history and he made it sound so incredible. He didn’t know he was talking to someone who absolutely loved history so he had no idea how much of what he said had an impact. I started thinking about actually moving there. Could I do it? Should I do it? I wasn’t sure what was required. Would I need to have a job before I could move? Was there a limit to how long I could be there? I had a couple of friends from Business School I kept in contact with, so maybe they’d be able to recommend something to me, a company or a field I could start looking into?

I started to get excited with the possibilities. By the time I pulled my phone out, it was past midnight over there, but I didn’t care; I had to begin inquiring. I dashed off a quick note to Sam and Michael, hopeful to have a reply within a couple of days.

Poor Henry, I’m sure he felt a little ignored which was most definitely not my intent. After I sent the note, I put my phone back in my pocket and glanced at him. Yep: scowl city.

“Oh, Henry, you’ve talked London up so much that I needed to contact Sam and Michael, you know, start to put feelers out to find a position.”

“Who are Sam and Michael?”

“Two guys I’ve known for years. We met back in Business School and they are both over in London now. I saw Sam recently, last time I was in Europe, but it’s been longer since I spoke to Michael. He’s running his own company now and I think he is expecting his second, or maybe his third child at the end of April. No, I know what it is. He’s expecting both number 2 and number 3: he’s having twins, boys I think. Anyway, I just asked if they know of anything so who knows?”

I took a bite of the delicious lamb in front of me and smiled. I wanted to hum and do a little dance in my chair, but I knew that would look silly.

“You know what, Henry? You and I have pretty much spent the whole time we’ve been together talking about me and that’s just not fair. Tell me about yourself.”

“What would you like to know?”

“For instance, this morning. How were you able to get a room, no, sorry, to get a suite here with basically no clothes on.”

“You noticed that, did you?”

“Well, not at first since I was entirely too busy feeling sorry for myself. It was about the time I was drying my hair that I realized where I was. So, out with it. I’m supposed to know everyone, and I don’t know you. Why don’t I know you?”

He studied me for a moment before he answered. “You must not watch movies.”

“I watch movies. Are you an actor?”

“Why would you assume actor?”

“Did you not catch the part before where I told you you were very handsome? I don’t even think that’s the right word. You’re, like, beautiful. I must compliment your parents at their successful genetic pairing.”

I have to tell you: Henry’s adorable when he blushes and gets bashful, and by adorable I mean he could a fluffy puppy a thing or two.

“Yes, I am an actor.”

“What would I have seen you in?”

“The most well known would be Man of Steel.”

“Man of Steel? That was the Superman one, right? Didn’t I read where they got some Brit- oh my God, it was you? Well, of course, you look so much like him.”

“Like who?”

“Christopher Reeve.”

I hadn’t thought about my first love in a long time. I felt the smile on my face and I got all warm and fuzzy as I thought about him. He’d just been-

“You had a thing for him, didn’t you?”

Being brought back to reality by a man who looks like your first love is not an easy thing to deal with. I had all sorts of inappropriate thoughts. “What makes you say that?”

“You look like a woman in love.”

“Well, I never met the man, so I can’t actually say I loved him, but yeah, I loved him. Man, I had such a crush on him when I was younger.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, my first real crush. I don’t know if it was him or Superman. Hm.”

I couldn’t help but think back to when I’d been a little girl and Mom would put Superman in the VCR. I’d been born the year it came out, so it always had a special place in my heart. When I started to pay attention to boys, though, as more than just cootie-carrying heathens, Christopher Reeve was just the end all and be all. He was-

“Earth to Sabrina. Hello Sabrina.”

I’m sure I was turning every shade of red known to mankind.

“You caught me.”

“What did I catch you doing?”

“Thinking, daydreaming really.”

“About?”

“I actually think it was Superman I fell in love with. And that’s a problem, you know, because no man can ever live up to that. Hunh.”

“What?”

“That just might be my problem. Who can live up to Superman?”

I sat back in my chair as I ran through the last couple of boyfriends I’d had and what went wrong. Maybe? Was it that I’d held them up to that impossible standard? Oh, God, if I’d done that then no wonder it never worked out.

Shit.

“What’s wrong?”

I didn’t answer him. How do you tell a god among men that you just realized why all your relationships don’t work out, and it’s because of you?

“Sabrina? What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“I have been so delusional.” How could I just brush this off, even with someone I barely knew? “I think every failed relationship I’ve ever had, and I’ve had quite a few, has been because of this.” I couldn’t help but nod. “Good thing you have a girlfriend.”

“How do you know I have a girlfriend?”

“Of course you have a girlfriend. Or wait, is it a boyfriend? I just made an assumption, wow, I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s a girlfriend, but how did you know?”

“I’d think you’d be quite the catch. You’re not wearing a ring, so I’m assuming you’re not married. And you have to have women throwing themselves at you all the time, so the likelihood that someone who catches your eye comes your way is going to be higher than for most guys. So you’ve got a girlfriend. She must be a pretty incredible woman. You must be a lucky guy.”

It was Henry’s turn to go quiet. Had I stuck my foot in my mouth yet again?

“Did I say something wrong?”

“In the interest of being completely candid, I don’t think most people would yet classify her as a woman. She’s younger than I am. Significantly younger, actually.”

Ah, one of those. I did what I could to school my expression, but I don’t think I was successful.

“In my defense, I didn’t know how old she was when I asked her out. It didn’t come up for a couple of dates and I wasn’t looking for anything serious. I just got out of a disastrous relationship and she was easy to get along with and had no major black marks against her.”

“I didn’t say anything, but okay. No judgment, well, as long as she’s not a child and as long as she meets the half plus seven rule.”

“Half plus seven?”

“You know, take your age, divide by two, add seven, and that’s about the lowest you should go in age.”

I could see him doing the math in his head and by his expression, he wasn’t following the rule.

“Look, it’s just a guide. If you’re within a tolerable range, no worries.”

“No, it’s a wider gap than that.”

“She is legal, right? No, wait, forget I asked. None of my business.” Yep, I’d contracted a serious case of foot-in-mouth disease.

“It’s okay, it’s been a topic of conversation among my friends. I know what people are saying, but I don’t care.”

“It’s none of my business, and who am I to talk since I typically go for younger men myself.”

“Really? How much younger?”

“The most has been seven years. The gap tends to be closer to four to five.”

“So that would mean he’d need to be…”

“What, you want a number? If I’m specifically looking at age, it tends to be five years, so 33 would be a good place to start.”

“I turn 33 this May.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing you’re seeing someone.”

“And if I wasn’t?”

“I don’t play the what if game. Just know you’re safe from me. I don’t believe in making a play for another woman’s man.”

In that moment, I sure wished I knew him better. He was good at concealing what was going on in his head, but he did have some tells. I was curious what they meant.

“You know, Henry, I want to reassure you that this conversation will only stay here, between us. I understand people in the public eye and I know that you must have a hard time keeping things just to yourself. No one will ever hear about this conversation from me.”

* * *

Ever the gentleman, Henry saw me to my door. I knew he was safe, that he wasn’t expecting anything since he had a girlfriend, so all pressure to be witty and charming was gone; that was such a relief.

We were just getting ready to step into the elevator when I felt something buzzing in my pocket and pulled out my phone, puzzled as to who would be calling me. When I saw that it was Michael, one of the gentlemen I’d emailed right as we sat down to dinner, I excused myself and took the call.

I think Henry could tell I was pleased when I got back about ten minutes later. I mean, I was only grinning from ear to ear and giggling as I hit the elevator button. I waited for the car to arrive before I said anything.

“Care to share?”

“I think I’m going to London tomorrow.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes yes yes!” I couldn’t control my excitement any longer, bouncing on my toes.

“Who was that?”

Luckily we got off the elevator. I was sure I was going to cause it to crash to the ground floor had I remained on it any longer than I had.

“That was Michael. He needs help at his company and someone he can trust. He’s got some stuff going on, needs help finding financing. Looks like we’re gonna try it out and if it works out, I have a job! I’d be working for someone I know and trust, someone who is good and decent and seriously, this wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t met you.”

I was too happy for my own good, at least, that’s the excuse I’ll always give. I jumped as I flung my arms around his neck. Luckily, he was strong, and had many muscles.

Many. Muscles.

“Thank you so much. I don’t know if this is really going to work out, but I at least have a chance.”

He gave me a squeeze and held on longer than I thought he probably should have. Longer than I hugged him, and he was slow to set me back on my feet, slow to let me go. Did I just make him think I was going back on my word, that I wouldn’t go after him? As much as I didn’t want to, as much as I wanted to continue touching him, holding onto him, feeling his body, I took a step back, put some distance between us.

“You know, you were a better listener than most of my friends, or my family for that matter. I don’t think you know how much I needed that today. Thank you.”

“I’m glad I could help. Now, I’ll get out of your hair. I’m sure you need to get organized, or, something.”

And just like that, Henry was gone.

I didn’t have that much to do other than get a flight. I upgraded to business class with miles and knew I’d at least be comfortable en route. I sent a couple of emails off, one to my cousin to let her know what was going on and that I might need her help storing my stuff until I decided what I’d do with it. I sent another one to my parents so they wouldn’t get worried when they heard the news that the company was going under.

Anything I didn’t have with me I’d buy. I was going to stay with Michael in his guest room as we figured out how I would help. Wow. 12 hours ago I didn’t have a job or clothes and was losing my place to live.

Life sure can be a funny thing.

Yeah, I was on the plane the next day so excited that I was bound for London, only the plane didn’t take off, which, as it turned out, was a good thing.

There was some sort of mechanical problem and you will never hear me complain about not falling out of the sky. Just as we were deplaning I heard from Michael. He’d decided to find out what paperwork he’d need to fill out in order to have me start working for him and that route was going to be harder than we thought. I needed to have everything squared away before I stepped foot in country, so I booked a flight home so I could get everything in order. If everything worked out, I’d be in London in a month.


	4. Chapter 4

I’d been in London for a couple, close to two months actually, when I ran into Henry.

Like I mentioned before, I headed home, got all my paperwork in order the next morning in a matter of hours, and was at the consulate in San Francisco applying to head over. Michael and I were pretty much on the phone the whole time and we ended up deciding that I should become a partner in his firm. It meant I had to liquidate a couple of positions that were a little earlier than I wanted, but I’d have a place to call home, and a financial stake in what I’d be working on, so it felt like it was worth it.

When I finally got to London I had my work cut out for me. Michael had hired someone who turned out to be a complete fraud and he was working furiously to restore his, and now my reputation. Rather than start to find the funding necessary for the two new companies, I helped him with his, strike that, _our_ image issues first. It took a couple of weeks, but once things weren’t on as shaky a ground as when I got there, that’s when I turned my attentions to the young pups. After my initial meeting with both of them, I let Michael know that we needed to cut one of them loose, and pronto. They were all flash, no substance, and with the image problems we were trying to put behind us, there was no way we’d recover if we kept them around. He thanked me profusely and we passed and I got to work securing the funding for the other company. It was almost two months to the day after I’d landed that I found and signed the angel investors who would, with about a million Euros combined among them, on top of what we were putting in, take this new client of ours forward.

We headed out to a pub that Thursday after work, intent on celebrating the funding. It was only a few blocks from the office so by the time we were there, I still hadn’t decided on what I wanted to drink. Trying to decide between a dirty martini, a beer, and something decidedly American, a Manhattan, was more than my fried brain could handle, so I told them to order a drink for me and I headed for the loo.

Yes, I was trying to use the lingo, and I could always count on someone laughing when they heard it in my _terribly American_ accent. When I got back to the table I was sad to see that my drink hadn’t arrived (no, they wouldn’t tell me what they got for me) and I was full of energy so I stayed standing, bopping on my toes a little to the music that was playing.

Finally, my drink arrived (the lads had decided on a Manhattan) and I attempted a curtsy and failed miserably. Michael snatched the drink out of my hand and told me that I wasn’t allowed to celebrate until I could perform the maneuver properly.

I wanted to punch him in the nose. Instead, I played along, if by playing along that meant I was progressively-and purposefully-screwing up the outdated, at least in my mind, sign of deference. At least I had them laughing.

Until they weren’t. I didn’t understand the looks that were exchanged until a hand covered my eyes. I panicked for about .3 seconds until I realized that I was among friends; they wouldn’t let anything untoward happen to me.

“Graceful as ever, Sabrina.”

I knew that voice!

“Hm, familiar voice but I can’t quite place it. Say something more?”

I felt his hard and muscular body as he crouched to speak directly into my ear.

“Conserving body heat would be good about now.”

“Oh my God, Henry!”

I heard his laughter as he lowered his hand. Turning, I was struck with how incredibly handsome he was. Have I mentioned that before? Pretty sure I have. His hair was a little longer- _long enough to grab onto_ -and with a bit more curl than I remembered and damn if his shirt wasn’t unbuttoned more than I would have expected and his face was a little shiny, like he’d been in the pub for a while, and _somebody take the wheel_ and damn if he didn’t make all my lady bits sit up and take notice.

We gave each other a hug and, like the last time we saw each other, just about three months ago (two months and 27 days, if I was correct, but who’s counting), it went on for longer than it should have. I even felt my feet leave the floor.

“How have you been, Henry?”

“Wondering if I’d ever see you again.”

That was about the time he finally put me back on my feet, but he didn’t let me go. “Oh, aren’t you funny.”

He went from his dimply-cheeked smile to a wide-eyed expression, something he was probably hoping approximated earnestness. “I prefer to think of it as being honest.”

I put my hand on his chest, because why not. “I bet you didn’t even think one time about me.”

“Darling, you would lose that bet.” He punctuated that statement with a fingertip bop to the tip of my nose and I head their whispers- _darling_ -and Mike made sure I heard him.

“I thought you just broke it off with Barry.”

“I did.”

“When did you and Henry start dating?”

I pushed on his chest so he’d let me go (wishing I hadn’t had to do that) so I could turn and confront Mike. “We’re not.”

“Why is he calling you darling?”

“I don’t know why Henry’s calling me darling.” I sure didn’t want him to stop. “Henry was the gentleman I told you about, the one who talked up London.”

“Henry’s the guy from the hotel fire?”

“Sabrina saved me from freezing to death.”

“While we kept each other warm, I’m sure any number of women, or men for that matter, would have been more than happy to take my place.”

“Just how did you keep him warm, Sabrina?”

I couldn’t help but glare at Mike. What Henry and I did (and really it was what we didn’t do) was none of his business. “What are you, my mother?”

“No, just your business partner. I need to know what we’re up against if word of this gets out.”

I knew that wasn’t his reason, so I explained to Henry. “He’s using that as a cover.” I had to turn back to Michael and give him a piece of my mind, but we were in public and I didn’t want to create a scene. I did the next best thing, outing him in front of his employees with his dirty little secret. “How could I have forgotten just how much you like to gossip? There’s nothing to tell. The man has a girlfriend.”

“Not anymore.”

I could not have heard that correctly, could I? I turned back to Henry. “Excuse me?”

He eyed me over his pint as he took several swigs. I wanted to lick the foam from his upper lip. “We broke up.”

_RED ALERT! RED ALERT!_ Holy cow was I up a creek without a paddle. Or a boat for that matter. I’m pretty sure I didn’t smile. I’m pretty sure I covered for myself.

“I’m sorry. That’s got to be tough.”

“Thank you. Not really tough, but thank you.”

He was not taking his eyes from me and oh my God I needed a distraction, pronto.

“Let me introduce you to everyone. Everyone, this is Henry. This gentleman is Michael, my business partner. That young pup in the corner is Nigel, and the ginger next to him is Daniel.”

They all shook hands

“It looks like I interrupted a celebration.”

“Sabrina closed funding today for our newest client.”

I wasn’t used to being given sole credit, even when I did something on my own. “We all worked on it. It was a team effort.”

“Nonsense, you did it. You corrected the optics because of Disastrous Dickie, you found the perfect angel investors, I mean seriously, this is all on you.”

It felt like Mike was going a little overboard, but he’d already had a couple of drinks and when he got like that there was no stopping him.

Henry tossed his arm around my shoulders and squeezed me to his side. “Congratulations. Next round’s on me.”

My _you don_ _’t have to do that, Henry_ was easily drowned out by three enthusiastic _thank yous_. I was more than a little on edge around him and I was more than kind of hoping he’d just leave and go back to his friends. Now that he didn’t have a girlfriend I wasn’t all that sure I could control myself around him. I didn’t want to control myself around him.

God, I was such a mess.

For the first few weeks, as we were waiting for my paperwork to be approved, and then after I got to London, any available time I had was filled with being preoccupied by the man standing more than a hair too close to me, how nice and warm and supportive he’d been, far more supportive than any man I’d ever dated. Now here he was, larger than life, completely filling every sense I had. If he didn’t leave in the next few seconds I was going to do something I was totally unprepared for, like fall in love with him.

Seriously, why the hell did that thought just run through my head? I wasn’t prepared to fall in love with anyone. The ending to my relationship with Barry had knocked me for a loop and just, I couldn’t do that. Not now. Not with a new job and in a new country and just no.

I’d mastered the fake interested gaze years ago, so I was able to stay on the periphery of their conversation, adding a comment here or a laugh there. I used my time to study this incredibly handsome, and now absolutely available, bachelor before me. He was easy in conversation with them, but then again, they were boys and they were talking about sports, of course he’d be getting along with them.

His hair was longer, like it was several weeks overdue for a cut, and that was just fine with me. It looked so soft and silky and there were curls that I’m sure were made for wrapping around my fingers. There were a couple of times I had to mentally shake myself out of a stupor so that I didn’t reach for his head.

Seriously, I cannot even tell you how much I wanted to play with the little hairs at the nape of his neck, fingernails lightly scratching over his skin, seeing if I could get him to shiver and whether or not he’d-

“Sabrina?”

I turned to Mike and noticed that they were all looking at me. What had I missed? “Hm?”

Laughter, great, just what I needed: feel even more out of place than I already did.

“What?”

“Have you picked a team?”

“A team?”

“Football?”

All eyes were on me and I decided I’d had enough. “I think it’s time for me to go home.”

I knew I’d hear from Mike. I was his excuse for being out tonight instead of being at home.

“We just got here. What gives?”

I hated always being right.

“I’m not going to be a wet blanket on your night out, so, I’ll just go.”

Henry tried to be encouraging. “You can pick a team now.”

“No, that’s okay.”

“Why not? You always liked football, American football for you chaps. Now that you’re here, you need to pick a real football team.”

“I don’t know anything about the teams or players or whatever, and I don’t have time for that stuff.”

“Aw, sure you do.” Michael had started slurring.

“I’m just gonna go.”

“No, come on, of course you have time.”

I knew I wasn’t fair to Mike, but his comment was the final straw. I was more talking to myself than anyone else, but I still made sure he heard me. “Why is it that no one ever believes me when I say something?” I stood up and grabbed for my purse and jacket, throwing them over my arm. I almost walked out but decided I’d had it. I wasn’t going to put up with his shenanigans any longer. “I don’t have time. I work all day and well into the night, any free time I have, which is very little, is taken up with trying to find a place to live so I can get out of your hair before Portia has the twins, and if I’m not looking at flats, I’m helping Portia. Have you not noticed that I’m always helping Portia around the house?”

“You don’t have to do that, you know.”

“That means that you will?”

Defensive as always he quipped, “I do.”

“Oh please. You don’t, not at all. If Marcia knew she’d tan your hide.”

“Who’s Marcia?”

My focus had been on Michael so I didn’t know who had asked the question. I responded anyway. “His mother.” I’d wanted to bring this up with him so many times, but with work being a precarious situation I’d held my tongue. No longer. Of course, the Manhattan had emboldened me, made it all easier to say. “When, exactly, did you stop helping Portia?”

“She’s always taken care of things. She’s on top of everything.”

“She’s always taken care of them because you haven’t. She has two full time jobs, the one she gets paid for and then taking care of you and the house, well, I guess that’s three, four, really, if you count taking care of your kid, and you have two on the way. She’s carrying twins.”

I didn’t even hesitate before roping all of them in. “All of you guys are married. Well, not you, Henry, but I’m not talking to you.” I turned partly away from him and addressed the other men at the table. “You’re all married, all with kids, how much do you do around the house?” I looked each of the three of them in the eye for a few seconds. Since none of them spoke up, I continued.

“Your wives all work, right? Your homes are clean and tidy? Dishes washed and put away, laundry done, food cooked, kids homework done, kids bathed and in bed on time? Who does all that? Magical elves?” I’d always loved that story as a child. I couldn’t stop myself and I knew I was about to go too far, but damn it, someone had to open their eyes. _Why did it always have to be me?_ “Let me ask you a very personal question. You don’t need to answer it because I’ll see from the looks on your faces the truth. You ready?”

I took a breath and the thought crossed my mind that I could stop. I swatted that idea away.

“Do you get the kind of attention from your wives that you want?” I let that question linger and when they finally understood what I was asking, none of them could look me in the eye. “No? How often do you help her out? Why should she want to pay attention to you when she has kids and a house and your life to maintain on top of her work?”

A brainstorm hit and I opened my mouth a couple of times to speak, but kept shutting it. Would they go for it?

“What is it, Sabrina? You look like you have something else you want to say.”

I’d forgotten Henry was there until he spoke up. I was sure he was going to disappear faster than Theranos’s valuation. He’d already heard my rant, no need to spare him my ‘brilliant’ idea. I continued.

“I have a challenge for you, for each one of you. For one week, just one week, take over the household. Do everything that she does: cook, clean, take care of the kids, all of it. Switch places with her. See what her life is like. But before you do that? Take a week and pay attention to how you treat her. Do you treat her like an assistant, like your maid and nanny, or do you treat her like the equal she is?”

While I was happy to see sheepish looks, I knew I’d been on a tirade for entirely too long. The mood had soured and I’d killed my own buzz. I was pathetic.

“Look, I’ve killed the celebration. Mike’ll tell you that was one of the things I was known for in school, so nothing’s changed. I really should go.”

I turned to leave and Henry stood. Yep, that was the end of my shortest-lived fantasy ever.


End file.
